Gambaccini: Ross is an ‘icon of greed’

Jonathan Ross returns to the nation's television screens and airwaves next month following a three-month suspension for his part in the so called 'Manuelgate' affair, in which he left a message on Andrew Sachs's answerphone saying that his friend Russell Brand had "fucked" the Fawlty Towers actor's 23-year-old granddaughter. One person who will not be welcoming the presenter's return is the veteran broadcaster Paul Gambaccini, who says Ross is now seen as an "icon of greed" by the public and that his £18m contract has been a "disaster" for the Beeb.
 
In an interview in today's Guardian, he said: "It may sound strange that I say this because you might think the more money the merrier, but I don't think any man, no matter how strongly rooted he is in family and friends, wants to be seen as the icon of greed in this country.

"But the explosion of the Andrew Sachs incident happened to coincide with that moment in the economic collapse when people started worrying not only about the financial fortunes of their friends but about themselves, and whereas previously Jonathan's exorbitant contract may just have been a piece of whimsy, it now became a personal insult to a lot of people."

Gambaccini went on to question why Ross had kept his job when DJ Russell Brand and Radio 2 controller Lesley Douglas felt impelled to resign their positions. He added: "I realise that the BBC is an executive hierarchy where all credit and the blame goes to the producers rather than the performers but nonetheless, to make Lesley go and have Jonathan stay for something Jonathan said shows a very interesting set of priorities." ·